Geometric and homotopy theoretic methods in Nielsen coincidence theory

Abstract. In classical fixed point and coincidence theory the notion of Nielsen numbers has proved to be extremely fruitful. Here we extend it to pairs (f1, f2) of maps between manifolds of arbitrary dimensions. This leads to estimates of the minimum numbers MCC(f1, f2) (and MC(f1, f2), resp.) of pathcomponents (and of points, resp.) in the coincidence sets of those pairs of maps which are homotopic to (f1, f2). Furthermore we deduce finiteness conditions for MC(f1, f2). As an application we compute both minimum numbers explicitly in four concrete geometric sample situations. The Nielsen decomposition of a coincidence set is induced by the decomposition of a certain path space E(f1, f2) into pathcomponents. Its higher dimensional topology captures further crucial geometric coincidence data. An analoguous approach can be used to define also Nielsen numbers of certain link maps